Contents

Corpse Party

CHAPTER 3

[Strange But True: Stories of the Occult] 1

Found at the staff room.

Chasing Down the Hidden Past of the Cursed School Building (--It Really Exists!) by Kou Kibiki

Over the course of several days, a series of incidents occurred within this town in which young children disappeared one after another. Their whereabouts were ultimately discovered through a thorough police investigation, but said findings were very much a worst case scenario. Three of the missing children were found dead in a concealed room beneath Heavenly Host Elementary, officially unused throughout the school's history. The fourth missing child was thankfully still alive, quaking in fear on the ground, presumably only moments away from demise when police arrived. Capping off this nightmarish scene was an adult male member of the school's teaching staff who seemed to be in a state of confusion. In his hands were a pair of bloodied scissors. The surviving elementary school student, after psychological counseling, gave official testimony fingering the scissor-man as abductor and murderer. The staff member in question was officially charged with multiple counts of abduction and murder of minors, as well as desecration of the dead. He was quickly taken to trial, where an insanity plea spared him from prison or death, but resulted in his compulsory admittance to a mental hospital. Interestingly, the perpetrator of these crimes was none other than the school principal's own son, who was widely renowned for his jovial personality. However, due to a mental ailment of unknown origin, he'd begun losing his ability to speak little by little during his years teaching at Heavenly Host. Once his speech was all but gone, he began searching for alternate places of employment, which occupied him for several months prior to the crime. The results of this endeavor were not favorable, however, and most of his days were spent staggering idly through the streets. His reputation quickly degraded. Several months after his admittance to the mental hospital, he managed to slip past the many nurses on duty and escape the premises. Immediately upon doing so, he made his way into the concealed basement room at Heavenly Host Elementary, where he took his own life by hanging. The three children he had killed were all Heavenly Host Elementary students... ...but the one girl who was rescued from the gaping maw of eternal slumber was not. Following her close call, she and her family moved to another prefecture, far from the memories that no doubt would have otherwise haunted them forever. Sadly, this was only the beginning of the misfortune that would hereafter plague the school, which had already earned itself many an unsettling rumor. Over the next few years, Heavenly Host would become a stage for countless incidences of rape, molestation and suicide. With student registration and attendance dwindling at an alarming rate in response to these crimes, the school was eventually shut down. (1975-11-18) The 60-year-old principal at the time had become infamous as an eccentric who adorned his walls, doors and furniture with incomprehensible graffiti. Even later forensic analysis of the writings throughout his office could make little sense of his haphazardly-scribbled enumerations. And the day after the school's closure date was finalized, this aged eccentric threw himself from its roof. He broke his neck on impact, dying instantly. As you can clearly discern, the sordid history of this school is indeed awful -- but there may be more to it than merely a series of unfortunate incidents. A power greater than any of us can comprehend may be acting as puppeteer from the shadows, maintaining an actual, tangible curse upon this property. And the key to it all lies with the sole survivor -- the girl who bore witness to the brutal murders and mutilations of three children no older than she. The girl in the red dress. The one who got away. My investigation into the supernatural side of this horrific massacre is only just beginning. Rest assured, I intend to make this a regular feature. I've begun gathering data for a follow-up report, so stay tuned: The next issue promises to uncover more details in this morbidly fascinating story...

CHAPTER 4

[Strange But True: Stories of the Occult] 2

Chasing Down the Hidden Past of the Cursed School Building - followup by Kou Kibiki

Let's talk a bit more about Yoshikazu Yanagihori, beloved son of Heavenly Host Elementary's Principal Takamine Yanagihori. The man was a born instructor, pure and simple. He took up the mantle as soon as he could, and performed his duties with peerless panache. But then the illness struck, and little by little, his winning personality gave way to pure instinct. He was slowly losing all sense of identity. Although the cause of this illness was unknown, its effects were anything but. Simply put, the good teacher had begun reverting to a childlike state. He began carrying an antique doll with him at all times -- a memento from a long-forgotten festival, perhaps, given to him by his late mother. His behavior during class degraded quickly. More often than not, his lectures would cease before the period's end, and he'd begin wailing mournfully. Finally, several months prior to the kidnapping and murder incident, Yoshikazu reached a point where he could no longer communicate his thoughts. Although he could still understand others, he became virtually incapable of forming words without intense focus. Given all the evidence mounted against him, Yoshikazu Yanagihori was arrested on multiple counts of kidnapping, murder and desecration of the dead. But due to his mental condition, he was never able to confess his involvement in these crimes, nor even properly discuss them with authorities. Everything hinged on the testimony of the sole survivor: one Sachiko Shinozaki, age 7. In search of the truth behind the less scientific afflictions this incident spurned, I of course chose to follow the trail of this mysterious little girl. Those who have seen the infamous newspaper photos accompanying this story may remember Sachiko best as the girl with the strikingly unusual red dress. It's hard not to feel sympathy for someone so young forced to watch other children her age being tortured and killed, one by one. And certainly, if I were to find Ms. Shinozaki and secure an interview, there would be some real moral concerns about digging up such painful memories... ...but then again, she's been a full-grown and (hopefully) well-adjusted adult for over ten years at this point. By now, she should be able to look back upon these horrific events with some objectivity, and give a more thorough account of what happened that day...

CHAPTER 5

[Strange But True: Stories of the Occult] 3

Chasing Down the Hidden Past of the Cursed School Building - part 3 by Kou Kibiki

Things have taken a truly frightful turn, dear readers! I stand now at the brink of a new age for the occult world. Nothing will ever be the same again. I wonder if it will even be possible to convey in words the significance of where I'm standing at this very moment... Prepare yourselves for a report unlike any other, for I am presently within the accursed school building -- inside Heavenly Host Elementary! And it's all thanks to my highly skilled protege, Naho Saenoki. Many of you may know the name. She has the ability to commune with spirits, and it's through these connections that a way has been devised -- A means of accessing this sacred ground. Together with my faithful cameraman, Taguchi, I have made use of this method to see these cursed halls with my own eyes. I have set foot into a school building that should no longer exist...a forbidden land of the dead... In addition to this article, Taguchi and I will also be capturing ample video footage. We have no clear plan of attack, so we'll simply explore and record. What will become of us in these dilapidated halls? What secrets will we uncover? Will we be able to learn the truth of what happened here? It may seem odd in such macabre surroundings, but I can't help feeling excited about what awaits us. Surely, dear readers, you can relate! I sincerely hope you will be anticipating my next installment with bated breath. For now, however, I must put down my pen. There is work to be done. I must gather evidence of this remarkable excursion, for soon I shall be regarded as a living witness to the dead!

[Strange But True: Stories of the Occult] 4

Chasing Down the Hidden Past of the Cursed School Building - part 4 by Kou Kibiki

I shouldn't be alone. I shouldn't be alone. We are not the first to come here, it seems. There have been many before us. And every one of them has either died or been swallowed up by the school itself. I'm not simply using the word 'swallowed' for dramatic effect, either. It is, regrettably, an apt description. There's a massive curse encompassing this entire building. It's like an entity unto itself, and it slowly devours the souls of men. It chips away at a person's core -- sanity, reason, even identity -- eventually destroying him. Nothing that made him who he is is left behind. Once it's gripped your heart, you'll quickly succumb to despair and loneliness. The essence of what makes you human is literally eaten away, as if by worms. When this happens, the body begins to necrotize and the soul becomes as black as spent ash. We've come to regard this process as 'darkening.' And whosoever succumbs to the darkening becomes an inseparable part of the school itself. In rare instances, one may be able to avoid the full act of darkening, instead fated to be seared unbear-ably by intense, violent thoughts and emotions.But most of the time, his soul will be rooted here, and he will be cursed to wander these halls for eternity with no hope of passing or exorcism. Thus, my use of the word 'swallowed.' This school swallows us whole, growing fatter with tortured souls every day. It makes me shudder just thinking about it. The means by which I've come here...the Sachiko charm... If its particulars ever got out into the mainstream, this school would never go hungry again. To any who may be reading this fourth installment -- and soon the fifth -- it's clear that you're a victim trapped within this hellish place, just as I am. The least I can do is give you some advice to help keep you alive as long as possible. If you still have even the dimmest shred of hope, hang onto it. Keep it firmly in your heart. Never give up on it. I can't stress that enough. I hope you'll be looking forward to part five. My assistant, Taguchi, has disappeared somewhere... Now that I'm by myself, I can no longer go home. So I'm just going to keep writing. It's my one true calling, after all. No matter what happens...as long as there's life left in me... ...as long as my hands can still move... I will never stop writing.